Motorola

The father of the smartphone has some of Android's best

Motorola is a longtime communications company, the manufacturer of the first cellular telephone — and it may well be responsible for making Android what it is today.

Motorola wasn't the first smartphone maker, but it was the Motorola Droid on Verizon that helped make Android the household name it is today. The original Droid (known as the Milestone in Europe) sold millions and spawned a number of successors. The Droid MAXX on Verizon continues to be popular, though aging.

But Motorola struggled to make money, and in August 2011 it was announced that Google would purchase Motorola Mobility — they company previously spun off Motorola Solutions — for $12.5 billion. Hardware was just one reason for the purchase — patents were very much another. Google insisted that it didn't buy Motorola with the intention of continuing to lose money, and indeed Motorola began to lose less. But in January 2014, Google announced it was effectively unloading Motorola to Chinese company Lenovo for $2.91. (Much of the disparity in price is due to the paring down of the company, as well as Google retaining "the vast majority" of patents.)

Much of 2012 and 2013 was quiet for Motorola, but in August 2013 Motorola rolled out its rebirth — the Moto X. Wonderfully designed, with customizable features such as the front color, back casing (including wood!) and camera housing — and it was to be assembled in Texas. (Sadly, that assembly line shut down.) The Moto X was heralded as an above-average smartphone that bucked the oversized trend, and didn't fall into the trap of packing in unwanted features and redesigned software.

The Moto X paved the way for two lower-cost smartphones — the Moto G and Moto E.

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All Motorola

Microsoft has scored a victory against Google in the courts. Redmond won an appeals court ruling that could lower the rates numerous electronics makers pay to license technology for smartphones and personal computers. The appeals court in San Francisco upheld a $14.5 million jury verdict against...

Motorola held a much-anticipated event, and blew the doors off with some great announcements.Three new phones — the Moto X Style, Moto X Play and Moto G 2015 — made their debut, each bringing something interesting to the table, and Motorola even managed to release a couple accessories at the same...

We're coming at you live this morning from New York City and London, where Motorola's about to thrust its new smartphone lineup (and maybe more!) upon us! That's right, it's another dual-continent liveblog, as only we can do.
We're expecting at least a new Moto X — maybe more than one — and Moto...

On July 28 we'll see what's next from this fan-favorite phone maker.
If there's one phone maker that's appealed to Android enthusiasts the most over the past couple of years, it's Motorola. With their speedy performance, "pure Android" UI and thoughtful software additions, Moto phones have...

'Your relationship status is about to change'
Motorola has started sending out invites for press events on July 28 in New York City, São Paulo and London. What will we see? A new Moto G is likely in light of recent leaks, but we wouldn't rule out the possibility of higher-end stuff as well....

Information and images of the 2015 Moto G have been in the center of news for a little bit already, but some new renders have surfaced online, giving us our best look yet at the device. While low in resolution, the renders show off the overall design rather well on Motorola's upcoming device....

Motorola has announced a new Summer Sale for the UK that will offer some rather large savings on the Moto X and Nexus 6.
Motorola's Summer Sale will run from June 17 to June 30, giving UK customers plenty of time to take part in these great savings. Included in Motorola's latest sale for the UK...

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A US jury ordered Motorola Mobility on Monday to pay Fujifilm $10.2 million as they ruled that Motorola infringed on one of Fujifilm's patents.
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A U.S. jury found today that Motorola has infringed on a patent relating to multimedia messaging held by patent holding company Intellectual Ventures.
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